जी में आया तो उड़ चली
फिर क्या हवाएँ और क्या दिशाएँ
बाँध नही सकता , रोक नही सकता है कोई
मन की तो सीमा क्षितिज भी नहीं ..

अहसासों को अल्फाज़ों की लकीरों से बाँध रही हूँ
उम्मीदों की सतह पर कल की नींव डाल रही हूँ
कुछ कहीं, कुछ अनकही, कुछ उनसुनी ख्वाहिशों को
आज इस खत मैं लिखकर, खुदा को डाल रही हूँ..

Account of :Visit to Bank of India with VTI students as a part of Social Cell Activity

When Vishi and I visited the Vocational Training Institute situated within the premises of K J Somaiya for the first time, we were amazed to see the arrangements, the highly equipped laboratories and fully packed classes. Arjun, our third member, was in one of the classes calling out the names of the students who were supposed to go for the bank visit. Meanwhile, we took a stroll in the corridor of the institute and the memories of my engineering college came afresh. The electrical lab with the bread-boards and the circuits, the notice boards outside every classroom filled with notices and circulars etc and the teachers teaching the students about various courses all were exactly as we used to have in our engineering colleges.
Vocational Training Institute is a platform for students to learn basic skills for earning their livelihood. The students may take up the jobs of plumbers, electricians, repairing of various appliances or even opening their own garage for automobile repairing etc. The main idea to take them to the bank was keeping in mind their future necessity and for their self benefit. They should have an idea of keeping account of their money safely and should not become victims of treachery of any sort.
After gathering all the students who were supposed to be taken for the bank visit, we took permission from the Headmaster of the institute. Before we could proceed, we numbered the students from 1 to 5 in the group of three headed by each one of us, i.e. Arjun, Vishi and me. We gave a brief introduction to the students about where are we going and what we will be telling them along with the instructions of maintaining silence and asking whatever questions they want to without any hesitation.
We then started our walk towards the Bank of India which was at a 15 minutes walking distance from our college. As we reached there, we made all the students to stop outside the bank and counted their strength to ensure that all had reached. Arjun and Vishi took the lead and went inside the bank with 5 students initially, after the bank manager gave his permission to bring the students in. Meanwhile, outside, I gave them a brief introduction about how a bank and ATM looks like. What is ATM card and what all it is composed of. There is a magnetic strip at the back of the card and that should not be kept near to any magnet. Also, they were amazed to know the difference between the debit and the credit card. The few interesting questions which were on the minds of everyone were:-
Q.1 “What is full form of ATM?”
Q.2 “Can we open a bank account? What is the minimum money required to open a bank account?”
Q.3 “Can I deposit the money in this bank and remove it from some other place or some other bank?”
Some of the students had in fact visited the banks before and one of them had ATM card also. Looking at their curiosity and hunger for more and more information, we decided to request the bank manager to address them.
Mr. R. Govindarajan, the Chief Manager was very kind to accept this and he called everyone inside and made them comfortably seated on the couch there. He himself spared his time and along with one other colleague, he briefed all the students about the verticals of the bank operations. Starting from the opening of a bank account, he showed the forms that need to be filled, the minimum money required to open an account and the documents required for verification for nearly all the operations. He went ahead in a very slow pace and told the students about the internet banking, the mobile banking and thus demonstrated that the bank operations can be done without physically coming to the banks as well. After all this, he told the students about the DMAT accounts and how the shares can be bought and sold through internet or mobile.

He also requested his colleague to show the students the existing user’s online profile where his picture, his address and bank account number etc were getting displayed on their bank computer. All the students were thrilled to see it and liked it a lot.
Not only did Mr. R. Govindarajan demonstrate these processes in detail that too from the perspective of making a beginner understand, but he also addressed the various queries of the students’ patiently.
We thanked the manager for his time and support of this noble cause and had lots of good memories to take away. Overall, it was a very good exposure for the students. They got a lot of information about the bank operations. Some of their myths were broken and they also gained confidence to enter the bank and talk to the senior-most person i.e. the branch manager himself. I am sure that from now onwards, they will not hesitate in entering any bank and will be having at least a vague idea of the procedures involved for doing basic operations. When we sat down and started our lunch, all of us had a faint smile on our faces and that showed the joy which we got by this activity.
We look forward for many more of such enriching experiences and many more friends to join us for similar endeavours.

Home is where the heart is

Four walls and a roof make a house, but it is the heart which makes it a home.
Home is a place where one can spend hours together but still not get bored. For me, my home is my identity. The very thought of home reminds me of my family, my mother, father and brother. They are the ones who are the intrinsic part of my life and make me feel at home. Where ever they are, my heart is there and that place becomes my home.
A home is the collection of uncountable memories which are attached with every stage of one’s life. The mere thought of home reminds me of the various stories and experiences which I shared with my family and friends there and thus it is very close to my heart. Childhood is a very memorable stage in one’s life. It is truly said that one realises the importance of childhood once one has passed it. The same is true for the home. When I had an opportunity to stay at home, I never realised its true worth. But now, when I am away from my home, I really miss it and crave to go there and be a part of my family once again.
Home is a place where I feel safe and secure. It is a famous saying that “Every dog is a tiger in his home” I think the same happens with human beings also. I still remember that night when I was returning back to home after my coaching class for eleventh standard got over. It was late in the night around 10:30 pm. The road was lonely with very less frequency of vehicles. I was driving my scooty when I suddenly realised that in my rear view mirror, there was another bike which was following me since quite some time. I became cautious and scared at once. That time, the mobile phones were not that pervasive and hence I was not having any means of communicating to my home. I thought rationally and the only aim was to reach the premises of my home by any means. I was so assured that once I reach my home, I will be safe. My dad and brother will take these people to task. This sense of security is the strong bonding and feeling which is attached with home and family. Once I was home, I had no fears and felt an overwhelming feeling of protection and security as an invisible warm blanket wrapped around me.
I had to move out of my home for the first time when I joined my graduation college in Ghaziabad. Initially, I was very enthusiastic and joyous about staying in the hostel. The main reasons which my mind perceived at that time constituted of freedom to stay awake late in the night (which was not allowed at my home) and experience of being completely independent. At home, everyone is pampered and we get the things in the way we want them to be. Parents give us a small heaven so well knit and comfortable that we relish our lives at home. These things started becoming even more evident as the time passed by in the hostel. The initial charm faded away when the food provided to us by the hostel mess was much below the expected standards. Although there was variety in what we got to eat every day, but the taste was more or less the same. I used to remember the delicious food which my mother used to cook for us. As days passed by, I started losing weight due to the lack of proper nutrition. It’s amazing how during our early life stages we crave to go out to hotels and satisfy our hunger pangs. Home food was a bore back then, but now eating at the mess has messed up my entire body structure and I absolutely regret the times I refused to eat anything which my mother cooked. I realised the importance of home and I am craving for that food which is cooked by my mother every day.
As time passed by, at the hostel I began missing something. Something was there which reminded me that it is not my home. I could never sense the same level of comfort and easiness as I used to feel in my home. There were all the possible amenities provided including the furniture, electricity and security but still there was hollowness in all this. The hostel was a hostel no matter how much we decorate it with our favourite posters or make new friends. It was then that I realised how much I was missing my family. I used to share everything with my mother without any fear. With friends, I could not do that. I could not trust anyone so easily and secondly, the way of putting forward the things in itself is somewhat modified. I missed playing games with my brother and those petty fights which we used to have. Moreover, I remember that we never stopped talking to each other just because of these fights. It all was so natural. But in a hostel with friends, a petty argument can strain a relationship forever and with all the girl talk that follows you hope that the world would open up and swallow you at that very instant. The perception that my father is the strongest person on this Earth and he will protect me from anything and everything was assuring unlike the studs I found in my college, who act as though they can move a mountain or fight Osama Bin Laden single handily but in reality even a cockroach can scare the living hell out of them. I was missing home terribly now.
For the first time when I went home after my stay at hostel for around two months, it was more than a casual trip. I was so happy to be at home. I felt like I have come back to my own place. Every small thing which was earlier insignificant was a source of happiness for me now. The gate, the garden in front of my house and my dog, all were welcoming me. I had never had such an experience before. I rushed inside and my mother was waiting for me. The aroma of good dishes which were being prepared for me made me feel so important. The kitchen, the bedroom and my room all were exactly the same as I had seen them before. Nothing had changed except my perception about them. Perhaps I now realised their worth. My table was exactly at its place, my old books were lying in the bookshelf, my soft toys were nicely arranged and my favourite bed sheet was spread on my bed. “Wow! This is called home”, I told myself. I jumped into my bed and my happiness knew no bounds. We sat together at the dinner table and ate all my favourite food and talked about so many things. When I was leaving for the college again, I wished that my home should shift in the city where my college was. But I was happy that I had been at home and had many new memories to carry this time.
Things moved on and I graduated and then joined a software firm. Again, I was posted in some other city than my hometown, this time even far away from the city where my college was. Inspite of spending four years away from home, I was not accustomed to staying away from home. But some things cannot be changed. So, I had to go to Pune. My life was at the cusp of another change.
From the cottage houses style of living in Kanpur, I was now exposed to this concrete jungle at Pune. I made a group of 6 along with some of my colleagues and took a three bedrooms, hall, kitchen, flat also known as 3 BHK. From the beginning to searching for a house and contacting brokers was a totally new experience. For the first time I encountered a complicated financial deal face to face with the broker, owner, lawyer, landlord and what not. That brought back memories about my home and how my father had performed all these responsibilities so casually without the purview of any apprehensions and tensions. We shifted our luggage and moved in. The flat was very different than the hostel room. In the hostel, our food, cleanliness and the security part was well taken care of by the college. But here, we were on our own. We bought the essential things for survival including the curtains, broomstick, the kitchen items, the toilet cleaner etc. Then I realized the importance of keeping stock of your inventories at home and how easily my mother did all this. We had almost taken a day to decide on what all to purchase and even after that visited the same shop 5 times as each time we forgot something or the other. We started living there and this was definitely much better than the hostel. We had more space, more luxury; we could cook food for ourselves and much more. But with all this came greater responsibilities. We used to keep track of the various monthly rentals including the electricity, water and society maintenance charges. It was a miniature model of home. I learned a lot from this experience and with everything, the image and high worthiness of the home kept increasing.
In this new setting I was getting accustomed but then again I still missed home. The festivals were one main source of reminder. Prior to this, I went home on every festival being closer to hometown, but now it was not possible every time with the nuances of leaves being available at a premium. Festivals are a time when the family gets together and there is happiness in the air. The mood is set and the decorated homes make you feel the essence of the festival. It was Diwali the biggest festival of the Hindus which is associated with lights and crackers. Unfortunately the monopoly of leaves didn’t work in our favour and I ended up staying away from home that Diwali. To cheer us up, all of us decided to imitate the things which we do at our homes during the festivals to feel like home. We brought crackers, decorated our flat with the candles and worshipped God that day. For each other’s happiness we did all this but deep inside our hearts, every one of us knew that still something was missing. I wished my parents and my brother on phone but longed to be there with them. I tried to show that I am enjoying myself and told them about the various arrangements I did. But my mother sensed the hollowness in my voice. She only said three words which filled my eyes with tears. They were, “We miss you”.
It is not only when I am sad, scared, not getting proper food, feeling to share things with a best friend that I miss home but also in the good times. When I need to share my achievements or during festivals also that I miss home. When I miss being myself, I miss being at home. The voices like the barking of a dog, vegetable sellers shouting out loud, milkman being scolded by my mother early in the morning of more water content than milk and the beggars coming door to door asking for the alms, all these are no longer a noise to me. They all have become an intrinsic part of my home and I miss them.
Hence, home is a wonderful place which is gifted to us by birth and we should thank God for this wonderful gift. It is not the brick and the mortar which is necessary for making a home, but it is the feelings of love, sharing and caring which bind a home. Home is a place where the even the silence is more comfortable than the words of many.
All my previous experiences have taught me that whatever I do, where ever I go, I will not find the replacement of just one thing in my life and that is – My Home!

परम सत्य

पहले सिर्फ़ सुना था,
सृष्टि रचयिता, जीवन दाता
अखंड शक्तिदाता,
परम ज्ञानी ,सर्वग्याता,
करुणामयी, तेजस्वी,
परम ईश्वर,
पालनहार - एक यथार्थ है,
वह अखंड सत्य है
उसके सिवा सब मिथ्या है,
कण-कण मैं उसका वास है


फिर एक दिन,
जब मानसपटल ने
अपनी सीमाओं के परे
विभिन्न पहलुओं को देखा,

देखा---
अपंग में सांग से अधिक हौसला,
ग़रीब में धनाढ्य से ज़्यादा संतोष,
कृषक में मेघवृष्टि में अटूट विश्वास

देखा--
सामान्य मानव में भी आस्था की नींव
भौतिकता से परे , उससे विलक्षण, उससे अद्भुत,
अकल्पनीय, अतुलनीय, अलौकिक , आश्चर्यजनक
और अप्रासंगिक -
ऐसे परम सत्य में निष्ठा,
उसे पाने की उत्कट अभिलाषा,
मोक्ष प्राप्ति की इच्छा ,
उस परमात्मा में लीन होने की
उसी में सम्मिश्रित होने की
उसके अस्तित्व मैं आवने अस्तित्व को खो देने की आशा,

और तब,
लगने लगा की आज तक
जो सिर्फ़ सुना था
उसमें लेशमात्र भी असत्य का कोई कण नही है...
वास्तव में वह है ,
हर कण में है
और मैने उसको स्वयं में
और समस्त्य सृष्टि में
समस्त्य प्राणियों के विश्वास में
प्रतिलक्षित होते देखा है..

If anyone is in very sad mood, I feel the emotions should be let out through the tears. They really wipe out the hard feelings and make the eyes empty to watch out for better things .. Below is the experience which many sorrowful souls experience!!

Eyes are full of tears..
No more place for more..
Everything is looking blurred through them,
Tears are ready to roll down any moment.

The anger which caused it,
has turned into agony,
No one to blame
No one, but ME..

It is feeling of loosing something,
Loosing once again..
But what hurts the most is
that all my efforts went in vain.

So here I am, sitting alone,
Avoiding every other eye looking at me
Trying to hide my tears from them
Forgetting that they can easily make it out..

Finally, when I couldn't take it any more,
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes,
Thick tears rolled down my cheeks,
And here I am - a little Relieved!!

A new experience

For the first time I went for some social activity in the streets of Mumbai and really loved that!!

Started early in the morning with lots of enthusiasm and zeal. Reached to some places in Mumbai where the assigned task could be done..The task was to find some organisers to put up the stalls during the Ganpati festival. The stall will be a medium to sell the handicrafts made by the small children from various orphanages etc.

It started pouring heavily, still the rains could not deter our team's motives. We went from one lane to other, asked everyone from shopkeepers to pan walas and found the organisers.. We were completely wet inspite of having the umbrellas and were feeling cold but that we realised only once we completed our task..

After the day's ordeal, when I am sitting now on my bed, I feel so nice that I did something out of the league and it a completely new experience for me :)

Good Bye Infy...

After walking for quite some time,
When I stood still and turned behind,
I saw...
Numourous souls who were nice and kind
Who've left their impressions on my mind...

It became difficult to turn back again..
As they had some very strong binding
Which was tying me back to them
Making it more and more difficult everytime
To just walk away and say GoodBye..

I cherish every moment spent with them
The times when I laughed..
The times when I made them laugh
or I cried.. And they made me stop..

But today, I am leaving all of them
There is no one with me, all left behind
No one to wipe my tears anymore..
Tears- which are falling in the sorrow of leaving them..

But, it is the nature and I have to move on..
There are many memories to take along..
They will be in touch my heart believes
But still.. I don wanna leave...

My true friend..

Dedicated to all my true friends!!! Cheers!!

Lonliness...
Boredome....
Even in the company of many,
These feelings occupy me often..
There are many people around me
I talk to them as well..
But still...
My heart misses someone,
Am not happy..
My mind wanders here and there..
Thinking about going away from the crowd..
Although there is a smile on my face..
But no real happiness inside..
I make jovial comments,
But no pleasure out of it I get..
The people around me are not bad..
But they are not that good also..
Noone close to my heart..
Noone so trustworthy and understanding..
I can share things with them ..
but none of the things which I want to ..

Happy..
Joyous..
Not many people around..
Still no need of anyone else..
No silly jokes getting cracked
but still happiness all around
sense of belongingness..
excitement of sharing ..
feeling to tell everything
pour my heart to you..
Want to hold time back ..
Tell things which I dont tell to anyone else..
That is true friendship..
Trust, feeling of being heard..
Being cared.. being understood..
That is what I feel when I am with you..
You mean the world to me..
You are the speacial one..
My true friend!!

And then She turned...

And then, she turned....
She was looking as beautiful as ever,
Same old eyes, same old smile,
Which I could forget never..

I wanted to say so many things,
But in front of her, I stood still..
Thousands of emotions, but not a single word,
What is this, is it love?

'Hi' said she , so did I,
More than her,I was shy
'Good to see you after so long'
She started as we started walking along...

Years have passed, then I realised
As I told her about my past life
Studies, then work, everything had changed..
Since the time we had been friends..

Although everything had changed
But same were the feelings for her
It was easy to think
But so difficult to tell her...

The more she spoke,
the lesser I heard,
Ears might be listening,
But the mind wandered...

All the times which she spent together as a child
Came flashing into my mind,
The times when we laughed, we played, we did homework
Since that time I have adored her..

Then unfortunately we had to split
To a new city, I had to shift
Neither of us said goodbye..
We just sobbed and cried..

Now she was sitting close to me,
My heart was joyous and glee,
Was thinking how much I missed her,
But how much did she-I needed an answer!

She remembered me and my talks pretty well,
She came to meet me and bought me a gift
She also likes me I was assured,
Perhaps waiting for me to say it first

Should I tell her now or later
the faster it is it will be better..
So lost in her and my thougths,
I didnt realise that even she sensed it..

She stopped talking and stared back at me
"What happened? Why are you looking that way?"
"I love you" - I said and looked at her..
Her lips curled into a smile...
Thats how I made her mine..


Our love was true, chaste and divine..
We were made for each other, we realised..
She said "Why you siad so late? "
And I regret that till date..